1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a fastening system for sheathing board. More particularly, the present invention relates to a fastening system that creates a seal between a fastener and an associated sheathing board to thereby prevent water intrusion and deterioration at the point of penetration.
2. Description of the Background Art
Sheathing board is a commonly employed building material and is used to create finished surfaces within homes and office buildings. These boards are nailed, screwed or otherwise secured by a fastener into the wood or steel framing members of a building. The walls created by sheathing boards are often load bearing, carrying the weight from other structural components or from external forces, such as wind, rain or snow. This can contribute to increased pulling loads applied to the fasteners. Because sheathing board is extensively used within buildings, there is a need for improving the speed at which these boards can be installed. At the same time, the speed and ease of installation must not compromise the integrity and safety of the resulting structure.
Complicating matters further is the fact that sheathing board is often formed from gypsum and therefore subject to the detrimental effects of water. Although new gypsum compounds have been developed in an effort to lessen problems associated with water, the predominate make up of gypsum board is nevertheless gypsum and gypsum cannot be manufactured so as to be completely water resistant. Water intrusion into sheathing board is inherently problematic and can occur in the area around the fastener, which is called the penetration point. This water intrusion can cause a failure in the area around the fastener and a failure of the applied holding strength of the fasteners over the sheathing. This, in turn, can result in gypsum sheathing falling from its points of wall attachment and ultimately the complete failure of the board. These failures can be catastrophic.
One limited solution to preventing water intrusion is the use of caulk around the penetration point. In fact, for a number of different finishing systems, there can be locally or nationally required building codes which require that fastener heads be sealed with water resistant caulk or tape. In some cases, building felts or raps are used to cover the entire exposed surface of the sheathing to act as a protective barrier. However, these prior systems tend to contract and/or expand and thereafter break down after long term exposure to ultra violet (UV) radiation and/or temperature variations. The instability of these prior systems in such environments means that they are not an ideal solution. Furthermore, all of these systems are labor intensive and greatly increase the time required for sheathing board installation. Due to the inhibiting cost disadvantage of these systems, if they are not required by local building codes, they are usually not employed. Thus, there exists a need in the art for water and weather resistant fasteners that can be quickly and easily installed.
One known means of increasing the speed with which fasteners are driven is nailing strips. These strips are used to retain a series of fasteners, such as nails or screws. The strips enable a user to sequentially drive the fasteners, and in the process sever them from the strip, via an automated nailing machine or a powered drill. An example of a nailing strip is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,211,284 to Anstett. Anstett '284 discloses a nailing strip formed from a synthetic plastic material. A portion of the nailing strip is designed to break away once a nail is driven. This portion of the strip then acts as a weather tight seal for the head of the nail.
Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 6,036,013 to Chen discloses a screw feed belt which holds a number of screws in an elongated strap. Connecting ribs are used to secure the individual screws. These ribs break upon the axial rotation of the screw and further permit the positioning of an associated positioning ring. The positioning ring includes a central opening that receives the shank of an associated screw.
The use of water tight seals in conjunction with mechanical fasteners is also known in the art. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,439,516 to Holcomb discloses a washer with a disc like body that is adapted to be secured about the outer portion of a shank. The washer is formed from a rubber or a rubber-like substance and forms a seal about an associated opening to prevent the entrance of water. The washer is resilient and when under compression it completely fills the space between the head of the fastener and an underlying plate or sheet.
Although each of the above referenced inventions achieves its individual objective, they all suffer from a common drawbacks. Namely, none of the aforementioned inventions are specifically for use in installing sheathing board and none of the background inventions provide a system for quickly installing a series of fasteners in a completely water and/or weather resistant manner.